by Jason Kenyon
‘I need to talk it over with the others when they get here,’ Archimegadon said.
‘Somehow I guessed that was coming,’ Valia said with a smirk.
Faith in his plan sinking fast, Archimegadon wondered just what would happen when Tharanor, Neurion, and Anjilo arrived. Thinking of Anjilo, he put together a few further ideas, though there was no way he’d be able to discuss them in front of Valia. But now they knew where the Shield would be hiding, was it worth declining Valia’s offer and trying to sneak in instead? He wasn’t too sure he liked what he’d gotten himself into.
Obdo distracted Valia by talking to her about the Shulgar. She seemed a lot more animated when discussing them, and how they lived when undisturbed. Apparently she’d found a quiet spot in the forests outside Ferrina where the Shulgar had lived in relative peace, inhabiting a deserted mine shaft when they weren’t hunting for food. Pursued by the kingdom, Valia had led first the knights and then the paladins across the country, hoping to allow the Shulgar to stay secret and unharmed while she worked out her own course of action.
‘Couldn’t they have stayed in the Sideslip?’ Obdo asked.
‘Killing off Marr kind of broke the connection between worlds and made everything unstable there,’ Valia replied. ‘That’s part of why we had to jump back to Valanthas fast.’
‘Why didn’t you leave them there?’
‘These ones were already in Valanthas, remember?’ Valia asked, smiling darkly. ‘I didn’t have time to send them back. But I was more concerned with my own safety – after I left you that letter, of course. I did want to be polite, after you spared me.’
‘Most kind,’ Archimegadon said.
Valia’s eyes flashed.
‘That wasn’t sarcasm!’ Archimegadon said. ‘I appreciated the update… even if you did run away.’
‘If you were in my boots, would you have hung around?’ Valia asked.
‘I… shush.’ Archimegadon grinned in spite of himself. ‘I would naturally have stood my ground.’
‘Sure you would, old man,’ Valia said, returning his smile.
Archimegadon was both grateful and slightly fearful when the others arrived. The room was a little small to fit everyone, but nonetheless they all bundled inside, with Obdo and Mellara sitting on one bed, Ithalna on the sole chair, and everyone else standing. Everyone, that is, except for Valia, who was sitting on Archimegadon’s bed with one leg crossed over the other. Nobody elected to sit with her.
Archimegadon watched for a sign of Tharanor’s current mood, but the former guard avoided his gaze and maintained his usual dour silence.
‘Uh, hi,’ Anjilo said after a while. ‘Hello, Valia. Long time no see.’
‘Indeed,’ Valia said. A flicker of a smile crossed over her face. ‘Hello, everyone.’
‘Erm, so, greetings all,’ Archimegadon said, when nobody else chose to fill the silence. ‘We are, erm, gathered here to discuss our plans. Regarding the Syrakh. And defeating the Shield of Lut’yis.’
Well, this was a disaster. Archimegadon had no idea how he was going to sell this idea to the group. He was conscious of Valia watching him with that faint smile, while Tharanor’s silence was more oppressive than a sombre tomb. He just had to remember that he was Archimegadon, Mage for Hire, and ignore what everyone else thought.
‘So, Valia is here to discuss the possibility of allying against Malthanes and the Shield,’ Archimegadon said. ‘We share a common enemy, and Valia has at her command an army of demons – apparently called the Shulgar – with which she can assist us in invading the Syrakh’s hiding place.’
‘Gotcha,’ Anjilo said. ‘So, are we voting on it, or..?’
‘There are terms to discuss first,’ Valia replied. ‘My terms. The first term is that you will all be coming on the mission. I will not risk my life alone.’
‘Uh, okay,’ Anjilo said. ‘Any others?’
‘The Syrakh is mine,’ Valia replied. ‘You may plunder anything and everything you wish from the Shield, but the Syrakh is to remain untouched, and I will take him away with me after the Shield is defeated.’
‘This is ridiculous,’ Tharanor said. ‘It’s a joke that we’re even talking with her.’
Valia smirked. ‘Oh, hi there, Tharanor. You didn’t seem so ungrateful when I let you free at Stornis Hold.’
‘It was a different situation.’
‘This is pretty much the same,’ Valia said. ‘If you think you alone will be able to take on the Order, then you’re going to end up dead. My Shulgar will even the odds.’
‘If we are to work with you, then we need our own terms,’ Tharanor said. ‘If you want the Syrakh, then we need your word that you will not turn it on the innocent population of Valanthas.’
‘Er, that is, no turning it on any of the population of Valanthas,’ Archimegadon said, recalling that Valia considered the people of Valanthas guilty of propping up Salestis’s rule.
‘Hmm, alright,’ Valia said. ‘Anything else you needed from me?’
‘No turning on us either,’ Tharanor replied.
Valia flashed him a smile. ‘If I wanted to do that, dear, some silly promise here wouldn’t hold me back.’ She folded her arms after a moment. ‘But alright, fine. We are allies in this, and I won’t do anything to harm any of you.’
‘This isn’t me agreeing, mind you,’ Tharanor said. ‘But if we’re talking terms, I want us to have representation too.’
‘As you want,’ Valia said. Her eyes flicked from companion to companion. ‘So, you others? How do you feel about allying with me?’
‘I do not know about it,’ Neurion replied. ‘Miss Valia, we fought together against Bartell, and travelled to get the paladins to aid us. We challenged Belias together as well. And then you turned on us, and I remember what you did to me.’
‘I see,’ Valia said.
‘As a follower of the Light, I want to believe that there is goodness in you,’ Neurion said, and Archimegadon noticed sweat breaking out on his brow. ‘But I also remember the dead who littered the streets of Ferrina. People who tried to enter the Citadel, but were ripped apart at the gates. I have not forgotten what you did to Yuriath either. So if you asked me if I was willing to trust you, my answer is no.’ He sighed. ‘But my heart wishes to believe there is still a chance.’
Valia’s confidence seemed to have taken a knock, and she couldn’t meet Neurion’s stare for a few long seconds, but then she looked back up, and her grin was back. ‘Well, you make a fair point, Neurion! Not much arguing with that. But as the old man said, we share a common foe now, and I’m willing to help you all out this time around. No value in joining the losing team three times in a row, right?’
‘Good point, doesn’t having Valia on our side lower our chances?’ Obdo asked.
Archimegadon expected Valia to rage, but she just laughed.
‘Sharp,’ she said. ‘Ouch. But I assure you that I can take down the Shield here just as I dealt with them at Stornis Hold.’
‘You can’t be trusted,’ Tharanor said. ‘I just can’t bring myself to believe your words. You’ve only ever been concerned with your own well-being.’
‘Now, that’s not entirely true,’ Valia said. ‘I could easily have killed you and the old man on several occasions in Ferrina, but I chose not to. Think about it – I could have just killed the lot of you except for Ardon after you destroyed the staff, and then taken him to the Sideslip to meet Marr. But I spared you – I had mercy – because I didn’t want to do that. I tried to make it easier on all of you, believe it or not.’
‘If you think that a few spots of mercy make up for the rest of the killings, you’re sorely mistaken,’ Tharanor said.
‘Maybe,’ Valia said. ‘I’m not here on trial, though, am I? The question is, do you think you can deal with the Shield without me? Because I really doubt it, Tharanor. I’m willing to help you with that.’
‘We dealt with Marr, we can deal with Salestis and the Shield,’ Tharanor said.
�
�But are you really going to let pride get in the way of the easy solution?’ Valia asked.
‘Is it pride to care about the people you slaughtered?’ Tharanor returned.
Valia smiled. ‘Refusing to ally with me is lovely and symbolic, but hardly practical. You don’t have to like me, or support what I did in Ferrina, but we can work together, and we can fix this problem Salestis has created. It’s up to you. I’m willing to make the alliance.’
‘Damn it, I never wanted this,’ Tharanor said. ‘Come on, you others – surely you can’t all want to ally with her?’
‘Valia does provide a convenient solution to our dilemma,’ Ithalna replied. ‘I certainly have no talent for sneaking around, and while my magical prowess is formidable, it is hardly at the level where I can oppose small armies of paladins.’
‘For all we know, they only have a band of five people guarding the damn Syrakh!’ Tharanor said.
‘Oh, it’s more than that,’ Valia said, ‘trust me.’
‘You really think I’ll do that?’ Tharanor asked, snorting.
Valia got to her feet, and Archimegadon flinched, but she simply unruffled her clothes and stepped towards the door. She looked back at the companions as they watched her in confusion.
‘I feel like you guys might want to talk about this alone, so I tell you what – I’ll go and get my side of things prepared, and if you decide you want to join me, then drop by my room at seven and we’ll handle it together,’ Valia said. ‘Otherwise, I’ll stick with my original plan to deal with the Shield.’ She winked at Archimegadon, who stared back sternly.
‘Uh, okay, that sounds great!’ Anjilo said. ‘We’ll let you know, I guess!’
‘I’m sure you will,’ Valia said. ‘See you at seven!’
The door shut gently behind her, and the companions all turned to regard one another. Archimegadon tried to judge how people felt from their expressions. Ithalna looked quite composed, and she’d already stated an interest, so he supposed she would be on his side. Obdo didn’t seem too angry or vengeful, and had managed to talk to Valia on a reasonable level, so chances were that he would side with this plan as well.
Mellara? Hmm, she’d certainly dealt with Valia kindly enough, but she’d also stated on several occasions just how much she’d like to kill her. She was a practical mercenary sort, though, so she’d probably have fewer qualms about allying with one enemy to face down a bigger one.
Tharanor and Neurion had been clear denials. That left Anjilo, who right now looked like a good-natured cousin stuck in the middle of an argument at her relatives’ house. She’d previously been more positive about working with Valia, but might side with Neurion’s way of thinking, given her roots in the Light.
‘So…’ Archimegadon began.
‘Fine, we should do it,’ Tharanor said.
‘But Tharanor, think about how… erm, wait, what did you say?’
‘I said we should do it,’ Tharanor replied. ‘I know you’re all just going to break me down until I agree, so I’ll save you the time and bother.’
‘Erm…’
‘Don’t make me change my mind, Archie,’ Tharanor said.
‘Alright,’ Archimegadon said. ‘That leaves Neurion and Anjilo.’
‘Don’t I get a say?’ Mellara asked.
‘Oh, right,’ Archimegadon said. ‘Sorry, I’d already assumed the votes from the rest of you.’
‘Well, yeah, okay, I was going to agree,’ Mellara said. Obdo mumbled an agreement along with her, while Ithalna gave a single, confident nod.
‘I think we will need to take some responsibility for Valia after we’re done,’ Anjilo said. ‘If you’re happy to do that, then sure, let’s do it.’
Neurion scratched his head. ‘I feel like my vote doesn’t really matter when everyone else is agreeing.’
‘You can still disagree if you want,’ Anjilo said, ruffling his sandy hair.
‘Ack! But I don’t want to cause trouble.’ Neurion tried to mess up Anjilo’s hair in return, but was too slow. ‘I mean, it goes against almost everything I believe in, standing against my Order with the demons that ruined Ferrina. But at the same time, it feels like… like without Marr, Valia might get better. I would be happier to see her more like she was in the old days.’
‘You mean, constantly angry and bitter?’ Obdo asked.
‘No, I mean, at least she used to fight for what’s right,’ Neurion replied. ‘I want her to do that again.’
‘So we are in agreement?’ Archimegadon asked.
‘I’ll throw in my vote,’ Neurion replied. ‘I want to have faith in you, Master Archimegadon.’
‘And you would be right to do so!’ Archimegadon said. ‘For I also do not wish to entirely desert our previous plans. Anjilo, you still have your explosive supplies?’
‘Well, yeah,’ Anjilo replied. ‘Didn’t blow up the inn yet!’
‘Good work,’ Archimegadon said. ‘Now, Obdo will be following us as a non-combatant, so what I want him to do is carry your explosive supplies with us. Then, once we have secured the area, we need to set up the explosives to dispose of the Syrakh!’
‘Sorry, you want to do what?’ Tharanor asked.
‘Do you really believe that I would just let Valia walk off with the Syrakh at her command?’ Archimegadon asked. ‘Tush, where is your faith? No, Valia will doubtless be distracted with rescuing the Syrakh, and once she’s out of sight we can set up Anjilo’s toys and lie in wait for the Syrakh and destroy it.’
‘You don’t think it will set Valia off?’ Tharanor asked.
‘There is that potential,’ Archimegadon replied. ‘However, if we pull it off, we should be able to avoid looking too guilty, and hopefully she’ll blame the Shield. That is why we shall need most of us to follow Valia all the way to the Syrakh itself, so that she can feel fully supported by us. Then we set off the explosives, and that big problem will no longer exist!’
‘I guess that makes sense,’ Tharanor said. ‘Leaving the Syrakh with Valia didn’t feel right.’
‘I’ve made the explosives easy enough to set out fast,’ Anjilo said. ‘I can show you all how to use them later once we’ve got everything else planned out.’
‘Any extra ideas for dealing with Valia herself?’ Tharanor asked.
‘Not really,’ Archimegadon replied. ‘Going for Valia will only end in trouble, but I do feel that the Syrakh needs to be removed from the board, so to speak.’
‘No objections here,’ Mellara said. ‘You’d better make sure you do it subtly; if Valia thinks we’re the ones who did it, we’re going to be in a lot of trouble.’
*
The rest of the day was a rushed collection of last-minute decisions, with the companions collecting supplies and preparing plans for the proposed mission to invade the Crowntown Tea Factory. Archimegadon in particular took the opportunity to bully Ithalna into teaching him magic tricks, but she refused to teach him anything new. She instead focused on what they’d already practiced, and gave him a few pointers on how to cast some decent flamebolts as well.
Mellara forced them all to share a meal as the afternoon wore on, pointing out that diving into action without energy was a pointless endeavour. Archimegadon wasn’t sure it helped him particularly much, though, and felt quite nauseous for a while after he’d finished eating. The closer they came to carrying out the mission, the more he realised that they had on the line.
It was with a sense of deep trepidation that he departed from the Battle’s Reward for the last time with Ithalna, Obdo, and Mellara. Anjilo, Tharanor, and Neurion had returned to their own pub to conclude their preparations and training, after Anjilo had first run through how to set up her bombs. Archimegadon didn’t remember much beyond dropping powder on something and pressing a mechanism… oh, and of course he did recall the part where you needed to run from it as fast as possible.
The building where Valia was staying remained unlocked, and Archimegadon slipped inside quickly, feeling as if his intention to defy t
he Order was written boldly across his face, and that he might be accosted by paladin guards at any moment. Valia was sitting at her table again, but she was fortunately not surrounded by wine this time around. She looked up as Archimegadon and the others entered, and gave a short laugh.
‘I’d half-expected you all to change your minds,’ she said. ‘So, we’re going ahead with the plan?’
‘That we are,’ Archimegadon replied. ‘Unless you’re no longer interested, of course.’
Valia smiled. ‘Oh, I am still up for it. I’m just hoping that Salestis and Malthanes will both be there so I can have a word.’
‘Hmm, I am not sure that killing Salestis will be the best idea,’ Archimegadon said. ‘If you murder her, then…’
‘Then people will just continue to despise me as they already do,’ Valia said. ‘Still, perhaps I won’t need to kill her to make my point. I guess I’ll see if she’s there first before I make up my mind.’
‘Hmm, quite.’ Archimegadon wondered just what the consequences of their raid on the Crowntown Tea Factory would be. He also hoped that Valia was right, and that they weren’t going to break into an innocent location and disrupt the tea trade for no good reason.
His thoughts were interrupted as there was a knock at the door, swiftly followed by Anjilo, Tharanor and Neurion entering. Valia looked up at them and smirked, only for the expression to swiftly be replaced by shock and confusion. Tharanor was carrying her old weapon, Uldraxios, and he strode past the rest of the group to face her over the table.
‘Where did you get that?’ Valia asked.
‘When you went missing after the battle in Castle Aldrack, we tried to find you,’ Anjilo replied, before Tharanor could say anything. ‘We weren’t long out of the city before Bartell destroyed it, but we did continue following your trail to see if you were okay. We didn’t find you, but we did run across that.’
‘I see,’ Valia said, but her voice shook slightly. ‘So, Tharanor, is this a trade you’re after? My glaive for your sword? It would be a bit of a shame – your demon blade is pretty good against paladins – but I guess I can part with it.’
